1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for packaging sterile surgical masks in such a way that they can be dispensed one at a time without tangling the tie strings or contaminating other masks.
2. The Prior Art
The dispensing of sterile surgical masks has historically been a problem for consumer and manufacturer alike. In the prior art, two packaging methods have been used.
In the first method of packaging the individual masks are simply stacked together and placed in a container without regard for the problem of keeping the tie strings untangled. The packaged masks are thereafter sterilized and shipped to the user.
When a doctor or nurse attempts to remove a surgical mask from the container thus packaged, the tie strings of the packaged masks invariably become tangled, requiring some effort and time to separate the masks one from the other.
Moreover, since surgical masks are usually taken from the dispenser prior to the scrub procedure, handling of the masks when untangling them results in transferring microorganisms to the masks remaining in the container. When the remaining masks are later dispensed and used, microorganisms may be transferred in the course of an operation to a patient, resulting in postoperative infections.
The only way to avoid the risk of such contamination is to throw away all the masks that were handled when they were untangled. This of course results in much needless waste.
The only known alternative to the above packaging method involves individually folding each and every surgical mask such that the tie strings are isolated from one another before they are stacked and placed in the container. This method permits the masks to be dispensed without tangling and contamination of other masks, but it requires that the tie strings of each individual mask be manually folded, which is very tedious and which is more expensive.
What is needed in the art is a simple, efficient packaging method and apparatus that does not require the tie strings of each mask to be folded, and that will nevertheless permit the masks to be dispensed without tangling and contaminating the remaining masks.